You can’t buy a Smoked Salmon Dip with flavour this good! It truly tastes of smoked salmon, it’s soft and creamy with a subtle tang from cream cheese and lemon, and the freshness of dill. This is a dip to impress!
Smoked Salmon Dip
I consider this dip a bit fancy pants because the cost to make this is probably about 2 to 3 times the cost to buy a tub from the supermarket. Whereas usually, I’m chirping “this recipe is better AND cheaper than store bought!”, like these copycat Gourmet Crackers which I swear is about 80% cheaper than buying them and I double swear that they taste better.
But in this case, the homemade version costs more.
BUT it tastes SO MUCH BETTER and it’s flavour money can’t buy!! If you’ve ever tried store bought Smoked Salmon Dip, you’d know that it tastes kind of sour and only tastes mildly of smoked salmon. And let’s be honest, it can’t be real because real smoked salmon has to be consumed with 3 – 5 days after opening the packet.
Homemade is made with the real thing – real fresh smoked salmon. And as a result, it truly tastes like smoked salmon. Really truly!
Smoked salmon is not the cheapest thing in the world, especially if you get good quality (Huon Salmon is my favourite – it’s certainly the freshest in Australia + sustainably farmed). So using it in a dip is a good way to make less go further because when it’s blitzed up, it makes the flavour bloom so it’s much more intense than stirring chopped salmon into the dip.
HOW TO MAKE SMOKED SALMOM DIP
In addition to using real smoked salmon, the other bursts of freshness in this dip are lemon juice and zest (lemon flavour comes from the zest, tang comes from the juice) and fresh dill.
I like to use a combination of cream cheese, sour cream (to lighten up the mixture a bit, I find using only cream cheese is too dense) and mayonnaise (for a bit of extra richness and flavour). This is pretty much the same base I use for all my dips.
Serve it with breadsticks, crackers or crostinis. Crostinis are super easy to make yourself – just slice a small breadstick, brush or spray with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and bake! – Nagi x
More dip recipes
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French Onion Dip (from scratch) OR Retro Soup Mix 2 Minute French Onion Dip
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Hot Corn Dip – you’ll love the flavour in this creamy, bubbly dip!
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See all Dip Recipes, all Party Food and the Top 25 Party Foods!
More smoked salmon recipes
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Smoked Salmon Dip
Ingredients
- 200 g / 7 oz smoked salmon (or trout)
- 200 g / 7 oz Philadelphia cream cheese , full fat
- 1/4 cup / 55g sour cream (Note 1)
- 1/4 cup / 60g mayonnaise (Note 1, 2)
- 1/4 cup fresh dill , roughly chopped
- 1/2 garlic clove , minced
- 1 1/2 tsp lemon zest (1 lemon)
- 1 - 2 tbsp lemon juice
- Pinch of salt and pepper
Instructions
- Place all ingredients in a food processor, starting with 1 tbsp lemon juice. Only use a small pinch of salt to start because smoked salmon is salty, also bear in mind saltiness of crackers being used.
- Whizz until fairly smooth - about 10 seconds on high - scraping sides as required.
- Adjust lemon and salt to taste. Whizz again briefly.
- Transfer into bowl, garnish with lemon slices and more dill if desired. Serve at room temperature with crackers - I like using melba toasts and mini crostinis.
Recipe Notes:

Nutrition Information:
WATCH HOW TO MAKE IT
LIFE OF DOZER
I really, really tried to get him to smile for a cheery Happy New Year photo ……. You’d think he’d be grateful that I didn’t toss confetti on him like I did last year!! 😂
Hi Nagi,
As your recipes are high quality and you’re a quality person, I Just thought you’d want to know about the ads currently showing on your website.
“Wedding is on hold. Meghan seen crying”. Apart from being obvious click bait, when I click on the cross to close the ad – it opens their website, as if I wanted to open it????
Just thought you’d want to know of the damage to your brand.
Hope it goes well and you can rectify. All the best
Just whipped this up to have on hand for the new year (still to come here in the States) and all I can say is, WOW!!! Absolutely delicious. This will be a staple in my entertaining repertoire for sure!!
Another BIG winner! I absolutely love smoked salmon, never thought of using it to make a dip out of it, this is truly amazing and it sounds sooooo good! tryng this recipe out for sure!
This looks delicious! Now to bring on the bubbly and party. I think Dozer would like to party down with some salmon dip.
Happy New Year to you and Dozer, and your family!!!
Hello Nagi, Dozer, Thank you for YUMI receipt, tomorrow will do last shopping and will make dip. Did you use food processor that sent you to frenzy shopping, ha, Haaa. Ok joke on side, may You and your Dear Family have Healthy, Happy New Year!! SINCERE THANK YOU FOR YOUR WORK, MUCH APPRICIATED NEW AND FRESH IDEAS. Have done lots of cooking this avo, cooler weather helped me a lot, made soup with extra Veges and ham bone, cooked than roasted pork ribs, am making potato salad, white bean salad, pork chops, will be cooking tomorrow night. We have tradition of been busyyyy, busyyyy, table laden with home made food and will inc. your smoke salmo dip. Look after Dozer tomorrow night, fire work noise. Ciao!
Hi Nagi, I simply can’t live without your wonderful posts. There isn’t a recipe I haven’t tried. Thank you so much for sharing. Wishing you and Dozer a wonderful New Year for 2018.
With love from our tummies and hearts,
Sylvie and Anna Perth Western Australia
That dip looks and sounds so good. Will definitely have to try it. That photo of Dozer looks like the morning after new year’s hangover.
Hi Nagi, I have been making a very simple “Prawn Dip” for years that I got from a friend when visiting her in Maine – U.S.A. Now I’ll be trying your Smoked Salmon Dip recipe as it looks so inviting to the extent that I can smell the salmon, my favourite fish. “Huon” of course.
And is this the “Food Processor” that you had to rush out to buy? I’ve had mine for many years and wouldn’t be without one.
Dozer looks as though he’s thinking “Come on already – I’m over this “Pozer Dozer” thingy”. He’s so very cute.
Marvellous recipe, Nagi – shall make it as soon as all letters opened! All my favourite flavours combined!!!!! Hmmm: does ‘Huon’ sell ‘smoked salmon for cooking’? Same as your ‘stuff’ and also from Tassie, but in small pieces and way cheaper [yes, I know, naughty me!!!]. Oh Dozer is just telling you he would have grinned if he has had a whistle twixt his paws and not a clown hat on his head . . . .
PS If Yule has kept you too busy to scour the news ‘Fish Farming Expert’, on 17th December released some very interesting info re your salmon firm and my salmon firm and another biggie and then the ‘smallies’ . . . fascinating plans to read indeed . . .
How apt, I’ve been searching for a good smoked slamon dip/pate all week. My recipe is similar but I used Huon hot smoked salmon instead of cold smoked and it’s also delicious. I blitzed 3/4 of the salmon in the food processor then mix through the last 1/4 as I love the chunky texture mixed in with the smooth. Happy new year Nagi.
Ever the suave and sophisticated party animal, Dozer! He clearly knows a smile would only detract from his elegant air of mystery. He must be quite the chick-magnet at the beach and elsewhere.!
Nagi, just want you to know yours if the only cooking blog I look at, except my niece at http://www.potlicker.com – you should check her out – you would love her – she started her business at home playing around with making jams from beer and wine while her husband was in lawschool – guess what? He doesn’t practice law, he’s now running her very successful business in Vermont!
Anyway, I love your chatter, your pictures of Dozer and most of all, your wonderful recipes!!! How fun to have a friend from Australia! Best always and have a safe and blessed New Year!
http://www.potlicker.com is for sale and does not exist currently
Happy New year from Portugal.
How did you know that this is my favorite? It sounds amazing!! We’ve got to try out your crackers. Many years ago we made some kind of crunchy thingie — wasn’t that good. Your dip and crackers look like they belong together. Dozer I think is waiting for you to leave the room — that smoked salmon is calling to him. Happy New Year, Nagi!! xoxo
Hi Nagi, this looks wonderful as do all your recipes.
For Christmas we had among other things, your maple glazed ham, pancetta stuffing cups, wild rice salad, broccoli salad, cranberry sauce and two of your prawn dipping sauces.
Everything was superb and I have printed many recipes off for family members.
Thanks so much for sharing all your fantastic ideas, and moments with Dozer.
Happy New to you and yours.
Looks delicious! Does anyone know of smoked salmon of similar quality in the U.S.?
hi. Nagi made your meatball recipe for christmas it was. dellllish!!!!! made as you said no more no less…THANKS
I have a recipe that uses canned salmon and liquid smoke. Never use it again after seeing your recipe. It looks so much tastier! Love your recipes. Keep it up and give mom a break. Her recipes are wonderful and worth the wait. Love from Northern California
You 2 have a Safe New Year Party time!! Even if the “Furry Faction” looks like a Party Fart!
Nagi, this looks so good! A few years ago I made a smoked salmon dip very similar to this one (I think I somehow misplaced or lost the recipe in a previous move) and one thing it called for was a sprinkling of little red caviar on top of the dip once made. I don’t remember the type of fish eggs it said to use, but they were very tiny red caviar that would pop in your mouth when you chewed. It was absolutely delicious – of course it just adds to the cost of making the dip, but this isn’t something a person eats on a regular basis either, so why not splurge…it’s New Year’s anyway and the dip does go perfectly with a glass of champagne! Thanks for the recipe!